Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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217. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if her Department allows any consideration for elderly persons who have a permanent monthly prescription expense of €144 as opposed to those who have no medical expense when considering whether to award fuel allowance to the person; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48208/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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All social welfare schemes, including the fuel allowance, are operated on the basis of publicly available guidelines, which ensure fairness and consistency in determining eligibility. The fuel allowance is paid to those in receipt of long-term jobseekers, one-parent family payment, disability allowance, invalidity pension and some people in receipt of the State pension. Some 410,000 customers will receive the fuel allowance of €20 per week for six months of the year (26 weeks) from October to April, at a cost of €223 million. The allowance is subject to a means test and is paid only to those who live alone or with certain exempted people. The means tests which are used for social welfare schemes, including the fuel allowance, are based on income; they do not take account of a person’s expenditure. Full details of the criteria for the scheme are available on the Department’s website www.welfare.ie.